The kids aren’t the news

Glenn Beck, the ultra-conservative talk show host of Fox News fame, has criticized the media’s focus on politicians’ children, saying they should “leave the families alone.” He’s apparently just a huge hypocrite (Shocking, right?), because last week, he and radio co-host Pat Gray made fun of President Barack Obama’s daughter Malia for remarks the president said she made about the ongoing oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

After Obama shared that Malia had asked him, “Daddy, did you plug the hole yet?” in reference to the spill, Beck mocked her by affecting her voice and asking, “Why do you hate black people so much?”

He also questioned her intelligence and education level.

Beck issued an apology, but the fact that he and Gray did the routine in the first place — and went on for several minutes — shows that he really has no standing to speak about the actions of the mainstream media. He’s no better than anyone else, and really, I’d say he’s worse than most. I haven’t seen many people attack politicians’ children in that manner.

Even though Beck has proven he’s an idiot and a hypocrite, his original statements about not going after the children are meaningful. In fact, there used to be an unspoken agreement that the media wouldn’t go after the families. This mostly held true, though some coverage was given to Jenna Bush’s 2001 citation for underage drinking.

That changed during the 2008 presidential campaign, when the media learned Sarah Palin’s 17-year-old daughter was pregnant. A storm of controversy ensued surrounding Palin’s ability to manage her family, her daughter’s future and the resulting issues with baby daddy Levi Johnston.

Some of the attention, before and after the campaign, was brought on by the Palins — posing for People magazine was definitely a choice Bristol Palin made, not one that was forced upon her by the media. And some was brought on by the attention-seeking Johnston, who used the media attention to attack the Palins and get his 15 minutes of fame.

But in general, the media gave too much attention, much of it negative, to Bristol Palin. Getting pregnant changed the course of this girl’s life, and she had to give up her dreams to keep her son.

Being pregnant so young can be humiliating, but Bristol didn’t just have to share with her classmates and her community. Her teenage mom-to-be status was shared with the entire country by a hounding media that was supposed to leave the families — or at least the children — out of it.

Beck and others rightfully attacked those who would exploit Bristol or any other politician’s child. The media should leave the kids alone — they’re not news. Their parents are.

By doing what he criticized others for doing, Beck just proved he’s a schmuck. That doesn’t change the fact that what he said about leaving the families alone is valid. They shouldn’t have to deal with negative national attention because of who their parents are.

Attack Sarah Palin for her continuous idiotic remarks. Attack Obama for his lack of efficiency at ... well, anything. Attack Bush for just being Bush. But leave their children alone.
 

E-mail: hanns@indiana.edu